Job Getcha

This article by Job Getcha examines the figure of John the Baptist in the Byzantine Orthodox liturgical tradition. Drawing on a theological and liturgical study, it analyzes the place of the Forerunner in the annual and weekly liturgical calendar, as well as the theological content of the Byzantine hymnography dedicated to him. The author shows that John the Baptist holds, after the Mother of God, the most eminent rank in the assembly of the saints, as reflected by his systematic commemoration in the prothesis and the anaphora, as well as the six annual feasts dedicated to him. The analysis of hymnographic texts reveals five major titles attributed to the Forerunner — Angel of Christ, New Elijah, preacher of repentance, luminary of the Light, Voice of the Word and friend of the Bridegroom — which attest to the scriptural rootedness of Orthodox theology and the coherence between liturgy, iconography and patristic tradition.

This article by Job Getcha presents the life and holiness of Archpriest Alexis Medvedkov (1861–1934), canonized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 2004. Adopting a hagiographic and historical approach, the author traces the journey of this priest born in the Smolensk region, ordained on the advice of Saint John of Kronstadt, then forced into exile following the Bolshevik revolution of 1917. After a stay in Estonia, Medvedkov exercised his ministry in Ugine, in Savoy, among Russian émigré workers, under difficult material and pastoral conditions. The article documents the discovery of his incorrupt body in 1956, the translation of his relics to Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois in 1957, and the miracles attributed to him. It thus shows how a discreet holiness, rooted in daily service and prayer, was gradually recognized by the Orthodox community of the Russian emigration in France.